Poppy and Branch
is a book written by E.B. White. It was published by TBD in 1950. Plot The Trolls are small creatures who live in an almost perpetual state of happiness, singing, dancing and hugging all day. However, they are discovered by the Ogres, large miserable creatures, who can feel happy only after eating a Troll. The Ogres imprison the Trolls and eat them every year on a special occasion, called Trollstice. The Trolls, led by their king, King Peppy, with his baby daughter, Princess Poppy, escape through underground tunnels on the day of Trollstice, when young Prince Gristle was going to eat his first Troll, and the Ogres find that all the Trolls have replaced themeselves with wooden dolls with crazy hair. Enraged, Gristle's father King Gristle Sr. banishes his Chef who was in charge of the Trollstice preparation. She angrily vows to find the Trolls and have them eaten, while the King tells his son that nothing will ever make him happy. 20 years later, Poppy, along with her friends Biggie, a big Troll with a worm friend named Mr. Dinkles; Guy Diamond, who has an autotuned voice and can fart glitter; Cooper, a giraffe-like Troll; Satin and Chenille, the fashionistas; DJ Suki; and Smidge, a tiny troll, throws a big party to celebrate the Trolls' escape, despite the warnings of the gray troll, Branch, that loud parties will attract the Ogres. A Zen troll who Poppy has a crush on named Creek arrives, and tells Branch to start being happy instead of being grumpy, but Branch refuses. At the party, Branch's warnings come true, when the Chef and her henchcats Tin, Pan and Alley, having spent the last two decades searching for the Trolls, see the fireworks and capture some Trolls, including Poppy's friends. Alone inside the bunker, Branch looks at a bunch of homemade party invitations, indicating that he does want to go to the parties and that Branch have a romantic unrequited love for the princess. Meanwhile, Poppy goes on a rescue mission alone, as no other Troll is willing to venture to Ogre Town, including Branch. But later on, when Poppy gets into trouble, she is saved by Branch, who thinks she will not make it if she goes alone. They are later joined by a short-tempered fox named Reynard, who reclutantly joins the journey after Poppy insisting to wanting him to help them since he is the only one who meets the road to Ogre Town. Poppy, Branch and Reynard rest for the night. Poppy starts to sing and say goodnight to pictures of all her captured friends, which bugs Branch and Reynard. Poppy gets out her ukulele and starts singing "The Sounds of Silence", with other forest creatures joining in. Branch asks Poppy for the ukulele and he just tosses it into the fire, to Reynard's liking. The trio come across a tunnel that's supposed to lead them to Ogre Town. They meet Cloud Guy, who offers to show them which path leads to Ogre Town, and which one leads to Death. Branch and Reynard get annoyed with Cloud Guy when he tries to do a high-five, so Branch breaks a stick and chases him through the tunnel with Poppy running after them, while Reynard decides to take a elevator. Poppy and Branch wind up in Ogre Town and see how gloomy all the Ogres are in their everyday lives. Once inside the Ogre Kings's castle, Poppy, Branch and Reynard witness Creek, one of the Troll hostages, apparently get eaten by the now King Gristle, but Poppy remains hopeful that Creek survived. Poppy, Branch and Reynard find the rest of the captured Trolls, being guarded by a scullery maid named Bridget. Poppy discovers that Bridget is in love with King Gristle and offers to help her get a date with the king while trying to confirm if Creek is alive. While setting Bridget up for the date, Branch refuses to sing and triggers a massive argument with Poppy, revealing that, as a child, his grandmother was captured and eaten while trying to save him, because his singing compromised his location to the Chef. Branch's guilt and shame, over his grandmother's death caused his color, to turn from blue to gray. After Poppy comforts him with a hug, Branch decides to help Bridget and the Trolls, joined by Reynard. Bridget, disguised under the name of 'Lady Glitter Sparkles' gets her date with Gristle, at a roller rink and arcade restaurant and Gristle asks her to be his "plus one" at Trollstice. Poppy notices Creek being held captive, in the jewel adorning the king's mantle. Having helped Bridget, the Trolls attempt to rescue Creek from Gristle's room and steal his jewel, but when they open it, he's not inside. The Chef's henchcats recapture them all and they and the Chef reveal that they are being helped by Creek, who has betrayed them to save his own hide. Creek returns to the Troll village, where, using Poppy's cowbell, he lures the other Trolls out of hiding, letting them be captured by the Chef and her henchcats who lie in ambush. Seeing the events, after realizing he have found a friendship with Poppy and Branch, Reynard decides to rescue them. With all the Trolls captured and being ready to be served to the Ogres, even a heartbroken Poppy, who becomes sad by feeling betrayed and hopeless, loses hope as she and all the other Trolls turn gray when she starts to cry. Branch sings "True Colors" for Poppy to cheer her up, and also confesses his love for her. Poppy, after regaining her colors, returns Branch's feelings, and they both end up restoring all the Trolls' colors including Branch's. Just before being served, the Trolls are rescued by Reynard and Bridget, with the latter wanting them to flee, being thankful for their help and for showing her how to be happy, while she herself is ready to accept the Ogres' punishment for her 'treason'. The Ogres are gathered for the feast, but Gristle wants to wait for his date. The Chef makes them start without her, but she opens the pot and finds that the Trolls are gone. Thinking Bridget ate them all, the Chef and her henchcats order the guards to seize Bridget, until the Trolls and Reynard crash in on Bridget's skate and reveal that Bridget was in fact Lady Glitter Sparkles, and that for being happy it is not necessary to eat Trolls, as the feeling that Bridget and Gristle had on their date was happiness too. The Trolls invite the Ogres to sing and dance with them, making the grey creatures feel the happiness that was already inside them that they just needed help to access. The vengeful Chef, who sees her newly re-won position at court jeopardized, tries to kill the Trolls, but before she can do so, Reynard throws a wooden spoon at her head and knocks her into the serving cart and, together with her henchcats and the traitor Creek who was still in her pouch, rolls out of the castle, winding up in the wilderness where she and Creek themselves are devoured by a cocodrile who had tried to eat Poppy and Branch earlier. In the end, the Trolls live in peace with the (happy) Ogres, Poppy is then declared queen of the Trolls, and Poppy and Branch start a romantic relationship and both share a hug along with Reynard. Characters Main Secondary Film adaptation The film was later adapted to a feature film, Trolls, produced by DreamWorks Animation. Trivia *Here are some differences between the book and the film: **